Into the Shadows
by Remnants of Fantasy
Summary: One-shots about our favorite moody duck, Lena.
1. Chapter 1

**Hey people! I decided I'm going to write a bunch of one-shots about Lena. Some will be from her point of view and some from the viewpoint of others, but all will be focused on her. She is one of my favorite characters and I wish they showed more of her. Some of these one-shots will be connected or stand on their own, close to canon or AU. Either way, hope you enjoy it!**

**Takes place before Lena meets Webby.**

Lena sat upon her bed with her arms wrapped around her middle. The small dark room that she occupied under the amphitheater was cold and wet. She wished that she could have warmth but it was too dangerous to make a fire and there was no possible way for her to get an electrical heater. Those were kind of hard to shoplift.

She gazed about her room while her teeth were chattering unreasonably hard. It was only dimly lit by the purple lava lamp she had dug out of some one's dumpster. The ceiling did have a working spot for a lightbulb, but it had burned out two weeks ago. The mildew sent an undesirable stench up her nose but she was thankful that it was not as strong as it was in the summer. Right now it was fall.

The young duck sniffed loudly and wiped her nose on the back of her hand. Magica just _had_ to push her into the water, didn't she? They had been arguing (About how useless she was) and her aunt had become angry enough to punish her with more than abusive words. Her shadow aunt had tripped her off the deck into the cold water below. Lena seethed as she remembered the look on that smug shadow's face.

Now she was wet, cold, angry, and (now that she just coughed) most likely catching a cold. Great. Just fantastic! Getting sick was the last thing she needed in her miserable existence right now.

She drew the old comforter off the bed and wrapped it tightly about herself. She was wearing a bit too large, white t-shirt and black shorts. Her normal outfit was outside drying.

"Or becoming frozen," spoke a gloomy thought in her mind. Sadly, that was more likely. The late October cold and wind were not appropriate whether for hanging out your laundry. The teen greatly wishes she at least had another sweater to put on.

Her throat was dry and she debated whether or not to get a water or soda from the small fridge. That thought was immediately pushed out of her head as she realized she would have to walk across the icy floor barefoot. Her shoes were outside trying to stay as well.

_Thanks, Aunt Magica._

It was all her aunt's fault. How on earth was she supposed to get Scrooge's stupid dime when she had stinking ammonia?! Why did she have to get sick? She was a shadow for goodness sakes! Magica was constantly commenting that she was not real. So why did her body function and depend on the basic needs of a real body? Don't get her wrong, Lena loved eating a hot cheeseburger, but fresh food was rarer than a new moon.

_Why don't I go hang out in one of the stores? _Stores usually had indoor heating. But it meant she would either have to go there in what she was wearing or wet clothes. The wet clothes were not an option and she presently looked like a homeless child. She would either get kicked out of the store or they would call social security. Woopy.

Why did people have to be so snoopy? (A: they thought she was going to steal something or (B: they were pitying her. To be fair, she usually _was_ trying to steal something. She was an untrustworthy liar and sneak. So that didn't bother her. What did drive her crazy was pity. She hated pity. She could take care of herself just fine! It would be easier if she didn't have a loud maniac in her shadow twenty-four-seven.

…_.Or pushing me into freezing water._

*sigh*

Lena had been in foster care a few times before. She had been dragged by an _oh so well-meaning adult _to the police station. She has been put into the system almost immediately.

She hated it. The fake smiles. The "everything will be okay, " speech. The strictness. All of it. She was already bound to Magica. She did not need to lose any freedom that she scarcely had. Not that her aunt would have let her stay if she wanted to. It's hard to exact revenge in clan McDuck when you have a curfew.

Lena laid her wet head on her pillow. It was unsafe to fall asleep when this cold but she could not bring herself to care. She wondered which was colder. Her body or the empty void where her heart was supposed to be.

**Did you like it? If you have any ideas or prompts let me know!**


	2. Chapter 2

**Hey, Guest. Glad you liked it. Sorry I couldn't answer your question until now but fanfiction doesn't let me PM guest. No, I don't really ship Lena with anyone. But you are welcome to leave a suggestion anyway. (I don't write girlxgirl or boyxboy though.)**

There was something off about Lena's behavior, and it was not her attitude. The first time Beatrice Beakley noticed this was when she and the children were stuck in the subway. She had been scolding Lena when the young teen had gasped and flinched. The retired spy could spot the fear in her eyes as she backed away. Sure, no one likes being scolded, but they do not act like _that_. It was as if the girl was expecting to be hit. Was that something she was used to?

Perhaps the smart mouthing was not so much a rebellious streak as it was a shield of protection and a mask. She was very wary of adults. When Beatrice had asked who had raised her, Lena went completely stiff. Not a good sign.

Ever since she had given the girl permission to visit any time, Lena took full advantage of the offer. She was over so often that Beakley now automatically made an extra plate at every meal. It bothered her greatly how little concern her parents gave to where the daughter was at or who she was spending so much time with. She had yet to speak with them on the phone, least of all meet them.

Lena was as thin as a stick. The housekeeper had failed to notice at first because her loose sweater and baggy shirts hit it well. The same sweater and shirt she wore daily.

Her eating habits were off. Some times Lena would eat nothing and other times she would eat enough to make herself sick. There was also more than one instance of teen sneakily hiding food in her sweater for later. Lena was often irritable, sassy, and completely sarcastic, but was always in a better mood after she has had something in her stomach. How little focus and how easily she was distracted also pointed towards hunger.

Lena pulled out her phone and would tap away whenever she was nervous. Beakley wondered who she was texting all the time and was quite shocked to discover that the girl never actually contacted anyone. In fact, half the time her phone was off. She would type on a dark screen and stare at a spot on the floor as if looking for inspiration there in what to say.

The situation at home was obviously less than pleasant, but Beakley began to wonder if there was any trouble with Lena and her peers as well. Most teens that try to keep the whole rebellious appearance prefer to hang around kids that they think are cool. Now she could be wrong, but Beakley was pretty for sure hanging around four children that are a few years younger than you and have innocent little faces was not the definition of "cool." No. Lena must have trouble getting along with children her own age.

The housekeeper picked up a knife and started to slice a carrot. Just because she was turning thoughts over in her mind was no excuse to lack in her job. She was quite capable of multitasking. She smiled as the kitchen door opened and two young ducks walked in.

"Hi, Granny! Is it okay if Lena sleeps over?" Webby did a somersault and landed right behind her.

She gave her granddaughter a stern look. "No somersaults in the kitchen. And yes, Lena may sleep over if her parents are fine with it."

"Oh yeah!" The two girls clapped each other's hands.

"Dinner will be a while. I have some leftover chocolate chip biscuits from yesterday if you girls would like them. Just don't tell the boys."

Lena's face scrunched in confusion. "You made biscuits with chocolate chips?"

Webby giggled. "She's talking about cookies. She made chocolate chip cookies." The two girls sat down at the table and ate their snack. They chattered the entire time.

Mrs. Beakley was a stubborn person. When she made a decision she did not like to change it. Lena needed some adult love and care; and she would be the one to give it to her. _That _she was determined.

**Thanks for reading! If you have any suggestions or prompts, please leave a comment. ; )**


	3. Chapter 3

Thirteen years.

Thirteen years since the battle on Mount Vesuvius took place. Thirteen years since Magica de Spell's power was trapped insides Scrooge's number one dime. Thirteen years since her existence was pulled from the Shadow Realm into the world of light

And she hated every day of it.

Lena kicked a can that lay on the side of the street. She glanced at a family of dogs that we're eating at a table outside of a restaurant. The mother was feeding a fussy baby a bottle while the father helped their son open a ketchup packet. They laughed together as families we're often known to do. Or we're supposed to anyway. Lena would not know. She had no family. Not a real one anyway.

_Not that __**I'm **__real. So I guess it doesn't matter in the end._

When Lena was young, and quite naive, she had deluded herself into the hope that she too could have that special relationship with others like other kids. She had started to call Magica, Mom; in which the witch did not take very kindly to. Perhaps it was that the thought of being married and having kids disgusted her. She wanted power. Revenge! Not to be known as an old housewife.

However, after becoming aware of how the whole family title gave her an advantage of manipulation over the girl, she settled with the title aunt. Lena had been so clueless and stupid. Magica had rolled her into whatever guilt or obligation of loyalty to the family she needed.

Of course, that young duck was older and wiser now. She knew her aunt used her and only cared about her well being for her own personal reasons. But that's what family did. They used each other for their own personal gain.

The dog that Lena was watching looked up and made eye contact with her. She quickly turned her gaze and walked away. Fools those children were. They would discover the cruel reality of life one day.

She needed no one. In fact, she was even better on her own. The only so-called help she got was from her aunt, and boy was she willing to ditch the red-eyed shadow first chance she got.

Lena traveled to the empty amphitheater. She had come across it last month when she was new to Duck Burge. It was cold, wet, and smelled bad. She rarely ever had anything to eat that was worthy of being called food. Her clothes were tattered and old and her personal hygiene was not top-notch.

Today, she had exactly thirteen years of being alive. And thirteen years of being dead inside.

* * *

Two years later….

Lena laid on her back on her best friend's bed. She flipped through Pinterest posts saving whatever caught her eye. It was quiet.

Webby broke the silence by barging through the bedroom door. "Hey, Lena! I have a surprise to show you!"

The teen inwardly groaned. Webby's "surprises" could vary from anything from a butterfly to a tomb of vengeful dead spirits. "What's the surprise, Pink?"

"If I told you what it was, it wouldn't be a _surprise _now would it?" she answered matter of fact. "Now tie this around your eyes so I can lead you to the secret destination!"

"Oh, boy." Lena obliged to take the scarf and tie it around her head. "You better not lead me into some type of death trap."

"Like I would lead my best friend into a death trap."

"Heh...sure…" Lena made sure she left the scarf where she could peek and see where her feet stood.

It did not take long for the girls to reach their destination. From the white tile on the floor, Lena could tell it was the kitchen.

"Alright, " said Webby. "I'm going to take the scarf off in three… two… one…"

"Surprise!"

Lena jumped as a bunch of birds wearing party hats shouted as the scarf was removed from her eyes. There were pink streamers and balloons hanging from the ceiling and the table was covered in a plastic pink table cloth. On the table was a chocolate cake decorated with fifteen candles and a stack of wrapped gifts to the side.

"W-what's all this?" she asked bewildered.

Violate handed her a small pointy hat not unlike what the others were wearing. "Well, obviously it's your surprise birthday party."

"My…..birthday?"

"Well, yeah, " said Webby. "Today is your birthday. You are now fifteen!"

Lena stood stalk still. She started back into the faces of everyone in the room. Webby, Violate, Mrs. B, old man Scrooge, the three boys, Donald, Launchpad, the boys' mother.

"I…. I've never celebrated my own birthday before. I never thought of it _as _a birthday. Least of all a day worth celebrating."

"Well, that will be remedied from now on, " said Scrooge. "Your life is definitely worth something to celebrate."

"Hey," piped up the triplets' mom. (Lena could not remember the name of the one-legged duck for the life of her.) "This means you can get your drivers tempts in six months!"

"I'll teach her!" offered Launchpad. "Someone has to learn her how to make a proper crash."

Beakly put a hand over her heart. "Heavens no! I'll be the one instructing her in proper vehicle operation."

"I can always help her give it a go too, " offered the one-legged duck.

Donald grumbled. "She has a better chance with Launchpad."

"What was that?!"

"Nothing!"

Lena laughed. "What can I say? Y'all surely know how to make a shadow girl's day."

Webby tackled her in a tight bear hug. "Of course we do! You're our friend!" She whipped out a small package from behind her back. It was wrapped in blue paper with a white bow. "Now hurry up and open my present."

"Okay okay! Hold your horses pink." She tore the paper away and was left with a green and pink striped bracelet. "It's… a friendship bracelet."

Webby shuffled her feet. "Yeah, you sad you kinda lost your old one. So I made you another. Do you like it? I'll make you another if you don't."

This time it was Webby who was entrapped in a tight hug. "It's perfect."

"Alright, cut the girly mushy stuff." broke in Loui. "We need to eat cake!"

The whole family laughed. For that was what they were. A family.

* * *

**Hey, y'all! Today is my birthday so I wrote a short story to celebrate. I had fun writing this one. I hope you enjoyed it!**

**It's the holiday season! I love Christmas time. Speaking of Christmas, I'm going to start working on my story Child in the Alley again. Maybe it can write a chapter or two before Christmas. We shall see. **


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